Motorized surfboard



Oct. 26, 1965 M. sAwcHuK 3,213,822

MOTORI ZED SURFBOARD Filed March 27, 1964 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. MICHAEL SAWCHU K 3 MyW/ r ATTORN EYS Oct. 26, 1965 M. sAwcHUK 3,213,822

MOTORI ZED SURFBOARD Filed March 27, 1964 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 6

INVENTOR. MICHAEL SAWCHUK ATTORNEYS Oct. 26, 1965 M. SAWCHUK 3,213,822

MOTORI ZED SURFBOARD INVENTOR. MICHAEL SAWCHUK ATTO RN EYS United States Patent G 3,213,822 MOTORIZED SURFBOARD Michael Sawchuk, 96 King Park Blvd., Toronto, Ontario, Canada Filed Mar. 27, 1964, Ser. No. 355,210 3 Claims. (Cl. 11S-70) This invention relates to surfboards of the motorized type and is a continuation-impart of application Serial No. 294,396, filed July 11, 1963, now abandoned.

It is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard of this type which is stable.

It is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard which is more statically buoyant, i.e. more buoyant with the motor off than prior devices.

It is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard having more lift when in motion, i.e. more dynamic buoyancy than prior devices.

It is an object of this invention to provide a plastic shell craft construction having an aperture with a strong -motor mount therein.

I-t is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard for operation by an outboard motor wherein a barrier is provided to protect the user from collision with the motor.

It is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard for operation by an outboard motor wherein the user thereof may, if he wish, comfortably recline.

It is an object of this invention to provide a surfboard for operation by an outboard motor, such surfboard being of improved design and having a motor with a rearwardly flared chute adapted to permit the easy escape of the water of the motor wash and at the same time give lift and stability in turn to the craft.

In drawings which illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention:

FIGURE l is an exploded perspective view of a surfboard in accord with the invention;

FIGUR-E 2 is a vertical cross-section showing the outboard motor mounting;

FIGURE 3 is a view of an aluminum bumper assembly;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical elevation, broken, showing the motor control;

FIGURES 5 and 6 show details of a part of Ithe motor control;

lFIGURE 7 is a view from the underside of the `front portion of the bottom section of the Surfboard; and

FIGURES `8, 9, and 11 are sectional views along the lines 8 8, 9 9, 10-10 and 11-11, respectively for FIGURE 7.

The embodiment of the Surfboard illustrated in the drawings comprises a lower section 10 and an upper section 12 both molded from a plastic material, as separately illustrated in 'FIGURE 1, and fitted together to form a Surfboard unit, as illustrated in FIGURE 4, having a boat-like forward end with an aperture or passage 14 therein for the purpose of mounting an outboard motor as will be apparent later.

The lower ymember 10 has a fiat bottom and the surfboard unit as a whole is designed so that in its normal at-titudes in the water the fiat bottom will be roughly parallel to the undisturbed surface of the water. In motion, the Iforward end will tend to rise relative to the rear end.

The lower section 10 has an upturned peripheral wall that is formed at its upper edge with flange 23 for joining to a peripheral flange 36 on the upper section 12 as will be described later.

Upturned walls 22, 24, and 27 define the central aperture 14 which, in the assembled unit, unites with the flange 46 of the aperture in the upper section as will be described later.

"ice

It will be noted that the aperture `14 comprises a fiat transversely extending front wall 22 that slopes slightly from front to back of the craft from the bottom to the top and a pair of side walls 24 and 25 that diverge slightly and merge with a rounded back wall 27. The divergence of the side walls 24 and 25 is apparent from a comparison of FIGURES 8 and 9 which shows the side walls diverging from the front to the back of the craft. These figures also illustrate an increasing divergence of -the side walls from top to bottom as they approach with the rounded back wall. The rounded back wall 27 is flared upwardly and forwardly from the bottom to locate its yupper edge considerably forward of its lower edge on the bottom of the boat. FIGURES l0 and ll illustrate the upward and forward flare of the back wall of the aperture.

In the assembling of the two sections, the peripheral fianges 36 and 23 of the upper and lower sections are placed in correspondence bonded and overlaid with the aluminum channel 38 as illustrated in FIGURE 3. It will be noted that the forward por-tion of the upper section 12 slopes upwardly and inwardly to a peripheral ridge 40 and that there is a well inwardly of the ridge. The well has a vertically extending wall 44 that extends transversely thereacross and an opening having a downwardly extending peripheral fiange 46 that is adapted to overlay the yupper marginal portion of the walls 22, 24, 25 and 27 of the opening 14. The spacing between the wall 44 and the front wall 22 of the aperture 14 is sufficient Ito receive and house a transversely extending piece of reinforcing wood 48 to reinforce the front wall of the opening 14 as a motor mounting area. The motor mounting ridge is essentially comprised of the wall 44 and wall 22 with the intermediate wood board 48.

At the centre and rear of lower section 10 is provided a bearing 29 having a vertical bore 21 extending therethrough to receive a rudder shaft 26 on which is mounted a rudder 28.

The fiat area between the rudder bearing 29 and the aperture 14 has an inverted tray member 30 attached at its edges to the bottom 16 to define a number of cells 32 which are filled with buoyant cellular material 33 and are designed to make buoyant the assembled unit of upper section, lower section and motor in event the area between -the `sections should become filled with water.

In the assembly of the upper and lower members 12 and 10 peripheral flanges 36 and 23 of the upper and lower members are placed in correspondence, bonded and clamped together by any desired means, such as by the aluminum channel 38 as shown in FIGURE 3. The rearward portion 35 of upper member 12 is fiat in the manner of the top of a simple Surfboard and for the same purpose while the forward portion is raised in a boat-like form sloping upwardly and inwardly from the forward part of the peripheral edges to a raised ridge 40 and the raised ridge 40 extends transversely across the upper member a short distance rearwardly of the upper end of aperture 14.

It will be seen that the upper and lower members 12 and 10 together form a buoyant, substantially watertight, cell between their peripheral edges and the edges defining aperture 14. In case of leakage, between the edges or otherwise, water in the cell may be released through a drain hole 52 at the front of the upper member 12. In order to eliminate the water from such cell the Surfboard is inverted and preferably tilted slightly downwardly at the front, whereby the water from the cell runs out hole 52.

The upper member is, at the forward end of fiat surface 35, curved upwardly to meet the back transversely extending portion of ridge 40. The curvature supplies a suitable rest for a reclining human. The curvature together with the height of ridge 40 provides substantial protection for an operator from the motor (which the ridge 40 occludes to a substantial degree) in the event 'the operator, by accident, is thrown forward. Protection from the motor in an accident of this type is an important feature of this design. It will be apparent that an unshielded forwardly mounted motor would be a hazard to safety.

The rudder 28 is mounted in place in the assembled unit by extending the rudder shaft 26 upwardiy through bore 21 of bearing 29 and through a corresponding bore 54 in the upper member 12. Attached to the upper end of the rudder shaft 26 is a tiller 56 which projects rearwardly in the centre position of the rudder 28. A rope 58 is attached to said tiller 56 radially spaced from the Shaft 26 and strung in both directions to opposite rear corners of upper member 12 where, on each side of the rope, it is strung through a pulley 60 and so on through pulleys or rings 62 to a position in front of the normal standing position. From the forward pulley or ring 62 on each side of the rope extends two handle members 64 at an (adjustable) length to be conveniently grasped while standing on the Surfboard.

One of the ropes 58, that one on the port in FIGURE 1, is threaded through an eyelet in a bell-crank 66. The bell-crank 66 is pivotably mounted on the member 12, as shown, and the other arm 68 is attached to a rope 70 leading to a hexagonal shaped electricity conducting plate 72 which is slidably mounted on an electricity insulating board 74. The board has a stud 76 that projects through a slot 78 in the hexagonal plate, such slot 78 extending in a direction between diametrically opposed corners of the hexagon. Tension springs 80 diverge and are connected between plate 72 and board 74, to bias the plate 72 toward two posts 82. The springs 80 and posts 82 are symmetrical about a line, which is approximately aligned with the line of rope tension extending from the plate 72 to the bell-crank 68. The bell-crank 68, rope 70 and the steering ropes 58 are designed so Vthat when the port steer ing rope is pulled back by a Surfboard user, the bell-crank 68 is rotated pulling plate 72 away from posts 82, while when the port steering rope 58 is released, the bell-crank 68 is released and tension springs 80 pull the plate 72 into contact with the two posts 82. The point on the hexagon directed toward the springs 80 acts to pull it into contact with the posts 82, regardless of any asymmetry of rope, plate or spring. The plate 72 is electrically connected to ground by any desired means (not shown) while the posts 82 are each electrically connected to a sparkplug (assuming a two-cylinder motor). The grounding of a sparkplug renders it inoperative, therefore, when a post is grounded by contact with the plate 72 the sparkplug cannot function. If a motor having more than two sparkplugs is provided then the further sparkplug grounding (or cut-out) leads may be connected to one or the other of the two posts 82.

A Starter toggle 90 of conventional design is also proyvided mounted on the upper member for connection to the motor.

The fore and aft elongated motor aperture 14 with the side walls sloped and the rear wall curved or flared upwardly provides additional lift as it encounters the wake of the motor. This .augments the lift supplied by the prow of the boat.

The wake of the motor supplies a raised protrusion of water a short distance behind the propeller which is followed by a central ridge of water symmetrical with respect to the normal V-shaped wake. The elongated rearwardly curved aperture or passage 14 is complementary to the protrusion and the forward part of the water ridge and hence rides these water shapes as they progress through the water. It will be noted that the side walls 24 and 25 of the aperture 14 diverge from front to back to facilitate this complementary relationship as the craft turns. Thus the escape of the wake is facilitated under all conditions of operation.

In operation the Surfboard, which will usually be stored with the motor detached, will have the motor attached. The operator places the board in the water, pulls the steering cords 58 to detach the bell-crank operated plate 72 from the posts 82 and pulls the starter toggle 90 to start the motor, The motor operated Surfboard then carries the operator standing, sitting, or reclining. When the operator wishes to stop or if he falls oif, the port steering rope 58 is voluntarily, or involuntarily, relaxed, the springs pull the hexagonal plate 72 into contact with the two posts 82 to ground them and stop the motor. The original procedure will restart it.

The Surfboard is designed to be doubly buoyant. It will float by the buoyancy of the cell if unfilled or it will oat also due to the buoyant material 33 retained in the inverted trays 32 attached to lower member 10. In some cases the entire cavity may be filled with a buoyant material or may be a moulded buoyant material with no shell. The raised prow-like front of thesurfboard acts to stabilize the board in operation. If will be noted that the side walls 20 slope outwardly from top to bottom. This slope in combination with the diverging of walls 24 and 25 of the aperture from front to back combine to stabilize the craft during turns in rough water.

The ropes shown are preferably made of nylon cord having the advantage that they do not corrode or become ineffective as a result of exposure to water.

Modifications of the invention will be apparent. For example, the back wall has been shown in preferred form which is rounded. It could be a vertical section that is straight in the vertical transverse section but curved in a longitudinal vertical section to react against the wash from the motor and provide lift for the Surfboard and permit easy escape of the wash as explained above in the case of the rounded back wall.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A Surfboard device comprising a body having a rearward Substantially flat portion and a forward portion resembling the prow of a boat, said forward portion having an aperture therethrough adapted to house a boat motor shaft with the propeller projecting through said aperture located and oriented to drive said Surfboard in a forward direction, said forward portion having a height to form a safety guard for a motor mounted in said aperture, said aperture having a front wall, side walls and a back wall that is curved in both vertical longitudinal and vertical transverse cross-sections to provide a flared surface adapted to react against wash from .a rnotor to provide flift for the Surfboard and permit easy escape of the wash,

.`said side walls in transverse vertical cross-section `converging from bottom to top and in transverse horizontal cross-section diverging from front to back to merge with said back Wall and cooperate with the wash and provide 4craft stability during turns.

2. A Surfboard as claimed in claim 1 in which said rearward portion has a rudder and means for operating said rudder to steer said craft.

3. A Surfboard as claimed in claim 1 in which said ,body is formed from an upper shell and a lower shell, said upper shell and said lower shell cooperating along edges that dene the outer periphery of Said craft and that define the upper edge of said aperture, said aperture walls being formed in Said lower shell.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,593,806 4/52 Steele 115-70 X 2,897,307 7/59 Johnston ZOO-61.93 X 2,901,757 9/59 Remington 115--70 3,040,697 6/62 Federico et al. 11S-70 3,079,885 3/63 Cooke 11S-6.1 3,136,288 6/64 Hardy 115-70 FERGUS S. MIDDLETON, Primary Examiner. 

1. A SURFBOARD DEVICE COMPRISING A BODY HAVING A REARWARD SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT PORTION AND A FORWARD PORTION RESEMBLING THE PROW OF A BOAT, SAID FORWARD PORTION HAVING AN APERTURE THERETHROUGH ADAPTED TO HOUSE A BOAT MOTOR SHAFT WITH THE PROPELLER PROJECTING THROUGH SAID APERTURE LOCATED AND ORIENTED TO DRIVE SAID SURFBOARD IN A FORWARD DIRECTION, SAID FORWARD PORTION HAVING A HEIGHT TO FORM A SAFETY GUARD FOR A MOTOR MOUNTED IN SAID APERTURE, SAID APERTURE HAVING A FRONT WALL, SIDE WALLS AND A BACK WALL THAT IS CURVED IN BOTH VERTICAL LONGITUDINAL AND VERTICAL TRANSVERSE CROSS-SECTIONS TO PROVIDE A FLARED SURFACE ADAPTED TO REACT AGAINST WASH FROM A MOTOR TO PROVIDE LIFT FOR THE SURFBOARD AND PERMIT EASY ESCAPE OF THE WASH, SAID SIDE WALLS IN TRANSVERSE VERTICAL CROSS-SECTION CONVERGING FROM BOTTOM TO TOP AND IN TRANSVERSE HORIZONTAL CROSS-SECTION DIVERGING FROM FRONT TO BACK TO MERGE WITH SAID BACK WALL AND COOPERATE WITH THE WASH AND PROVIDE CRAFT STABILITY DURING TURNS. 